Combined collar and neckband construction for clerical garments



Sept. 21, 1965 J. A. TOOMEY ETAL 3,206,764

COMBINED COLLAR AND NECKBAND CONSTRUCTION FOR CLERICAL GARMENTS Filed Feb. 21, 1964 FIG. I 28 22 26 1 l I INVENTORS JOHN A. TOOMEY LAWRENCE T TOOMEY ATTORNEY United States Patent Office 3,206,764 Patented Sept. 21, 1965 3,206,764 COMBINED COLLAR AND NECKBAND CON- STRUCTION FOR CLERICAL GARMENTS John A. Toomey and Lawrence T. Toomey, both of 75 Webster St., Worcester, Mass. Filed Feb. 21, 1964, Ser. No. 346,469 1 Claim. (Cl. 2139) This invention relates to an improvement in combined collar and neckband constructions particularly adapted for closed-back clerical garments and principally to military collars.

The closed-back shirt was originally made for use with a collar-button or the like passing through the collar ends and the neckband, but this was clumsy and difficult to fasten. Then this type of garment was improved to eliminate the necessity for the collar-button, but under these conditions the collar was apt to slip and travel within the neckband so that the collar division, at the rear of the collar in clerical garments, would tend to slip around and in some cases even become completely reversed and appear at the front part of the garment.

This invention has for its principal object the provision of simple new and improved means to prevent this slipping or traveling of the collar relative to the neckband and this is conveniently done by providing the male portion only of a conventional snap fastener or the like projecting outwardly from the outer aspect of the inner portion of the military neckband, without however piercing the outer portion thereof, so that the fastener is completely concealed; in combination with an opening or hole through the collar of a size to snap over the aforementioned male portion of the snap fastener which has a slightly enlarged head thereon and which can easily pass through the hole in the collar, the edges of the hole snapping behind the head of the fastener and thereby fixing the collar to the neckband without the use of any kind of collar-button being necessary and Without any part of the arrangement being visible at the outside of the neckband.

This invention also provides a combination between the neckband and the collar such that the collar is correctly located in the desired position on the neckband with the ends of the collar overlapping and being held in this relationship by reason of a predetermined relationship of the fastener holding the ends of the neckband together and the novel fastener between the neckband and the collar.

The invention further relates to arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and more particularly set forth in the appended claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in elevation illustrating the rear of the neckband and collar combined;

FIG. 2 is a detail view in elevation illustrating the position of the novel fastener, with the front portion of the neckband removed;

FIG. 3 is a section On line 3-3 of FIG. 2, and

FIG. 4 is a view from the inside of the military neckband showing the novel fastener.

In illustrating the invention, the reference numeral refers to a more or less conventional clerical garment or the like which might be a vest, rabat, shirt front, etc. On this garment there is attached a military neckband which is provided with a smaller inner neckband part 12 and a larger connected outer neckband portion at 14. These neckband portions are connected together along the corresponding bottom portions thereof as at 16. In this case the ends of the inner neckband portions are always relatively widely spaced but the outer portions 14 overlap each other as is indicated at 18 and 20 and are provided with interengaging male and female snap fasteners at 22. It is preferred that there should be but one snap fastener part in one end 20 and two mating parts in the other end at 18 for adjustment purposes.

The collar which is generally indicated at 24 is placed between the neckband portions 12 and 14. The collar also has two ends one of which is indicated at 26 and the other at 28, but ordinarily these portions are unconnected or sometimes connected by a collar-button.

The snap fasteners at 22 prevent the ends of the neckband from gaping apart and thus becoming unsightly. Heretofore there has not been a connection in this particular respect between the neckband and the collar to provide against sliding of the collar 24 circularly within the channel which is formed by the neckband portions 12 and 14. Hence in the prior art the overlapping ends 26 and 28 of the collar gradually shifted around under the ear of the wearer or even toward the front of the collar, thus also becoming unsightly.

This invention contemplates the provision of a single male snap fastener indicated at 30 which has a base portion 32 located at the inner aspect of the inner neckband portion 12, see particularly FIG. 3. The shaft of the snap fastener as at 34 extends through the neckband portion 12 and terminates in a head 36 which is spaced slightly from the outer aspect or surface of the inner neckband portion 12 to accommodate the collar between the head 36 and this surface.

The collar 24 adjacent its end 26 is provided with a hole which is just slightly smaller than the area of the head 36 so that the head 36 of the member 34 can be thrust through this hole, the head 36 snapping out beyond the hole, thus holding the parts securely in position but capable of manual disconnection when desired.

The collar 24 may be made of any suitable material but it is preferred that it should be made of a plastic material which will not fray regardless of how many times it is snapped on or off the fastener 30 and also which has at least a small degree of resilience so that it will snap past and be held by the head 36 of the fastener 30.

The location of the hole in the collar is important as regards the distance between the fastener 30 and the first one of the fasteners 22 if there is more than a single fastener. This means that when the parts are put together and the collar is snapped onto the fastener 30, the position of the collar within the neckband is thus clearly established regardless of the relative sizes.

It is to be particularly noted that only the male portion of the snap fastener is needed at 30, the head of the fastener 36 impinging upon the inner aspect of the outer neckband portion 14 and thus being completely concealed from the exterior so that this does not form an unsightly member which would not be desired. On the other hand the ends of the collar can overlap as required or desired inasmuch as there is but a single fastener 30 which holds the collar to the neckband and no collarbutton is needed. If the collar end 28 were a little longer or a little shorter than that shown in FIG. 1 for instance, the parts would still clearly interfit and look neat and attractive. The collar is easily detached, washed and replaced and of course the fasteners last indefinitely as does also the collar itself.

Having thus described our invention and the advantages thereof, We do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claim, but what we claim is:

A clerical garment of the military type which includes a double neckband having an inner portion and an outer portion and a stiff collar between the same, wherein the outer neckband portion terminates in a pair of ends at the rear of the neck of the garment and there being interengaging fastening means at said ends to connect them together, that improvement which resides in the provision of a male snap fastener member which includes a stud extending through the inner neckband portion from the interior surface thereof and protruding beyond the exterior surface thereof to a point adjacent the interior surface of the outer neckband portion, said stud terminating in a slightly enlarged head that snaps into and past a complementary hole in the stiff collar, said fastener member being permanently fixed to the inner neckband, the collar therefore not being able to slide revolubly in the neckband, the outer neckband portion completely concealing the stud and the hole in the collar.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,631,856 6/27 Dray 2127 X 1,645,946 10/27 Currea 2127 2,102,198 12/37 Dickman et a1. 2-103 X 2,934,768 5/60 Williams 2-103 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,182,662 1/59 France.

JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner. 

